Dean said she saw Santiago coming toward her and dropped to the ground.

"There was no escape," she said.

"I just began to pray, prayed that my children wouldn't lose their mother. Prayed that they wouldn't have a seriously injured mother."

But when Bartosiewicz gave her cover, she felt safe.

"He could have dropped right where he was at," she said. "Instead he chose in the process to shield another human being and save my life."

She predicts that they laid there for another minute before police arrived, and said Bartosiewicz told her that a shot was fired over them. She said she spent the rest of their time together thanking him.

"I told him how comforting his shield was during this horrifying experience," she said.

When Dean got home, she just hugged her kids, who were shaken up at the thought of a different outcome.

"My entire family...all of my friends...we are all just really grateful to Tony," she said. "He's a hero."